Forbes has unveiled its annual list of the world’s richest Arabs for 2017.
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Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal once again topped the list with an estimated net worth of $18.7bn, up by $1.4 billion from last year.
The UAE’s Majid Al Futtaim – the owner of a massive retail conglomerate – was ranked in the second spot with $10.6bn.
Forbes list of the world's richest Arabs in 2017:
Source: Forbes
Overall, the report found that the aggregate net worth of the richest Arabs climbed by 29.2 per cent over the last year to $123.4bn, spread among 42 billionaires.
“Arab billionaires staged a comeback. Depressed oil prices have started a mild recovery, thanks in part to OPEC’s cap on output. Stock markets are also up,” the report said.
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Nine of the entries were back on after dropping off the list in previous years, including Bassam and Kutayba Alghanim, Fawzi and Mohannad Al-Kharafi—all from Kuwait, Saudi brothers Salman, Fawaz and Abdul Majeed Alhokair, Onsi Sawiris, patriarch of Egypt’s richest family, and Moroccan real estate developer Anas Sefrioui.
With 10 entries on the list, Saudi Arabia claimed the highest number of billionaires with an aggregate net worth of $42bn, followed by Lebanon and Egypt with seven billionaires each. Emirati billionaires were found to be worth a combined $22bn, while Lebanon has the highest number of billionaires per capita.
The list was created based on stock prices as of February 17, 2017, for individual billionaires.
